PM Wong to visit Brunei, Malaysia in first overseas trip since taking office

SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will visit Brunei and Malaysia from Tuesday (Jun 11) to Wednesday, the Prime Minister's Office said on Monday.

Mr Wong, who is also Singapore's Finance Minister, will visit Bandar Seri Begawan at the invitation of Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, followed by Kuala Lumpur at the invitation of his Malaysian counterpart Anwar Ibrahim.

This is his first overseas trip since he took office last month and it is part of a series of introductory visits to Southeast Asian capitals.

In Brunei, Mr Wong and his delegation will have a royal audience with the sultan and Queen Saleha, and also be hosted to an official lunch by the Bruneian leader.

The Singapore delegation will also meet Brunei's Crown Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah, who is a senior minister at Brunei's Prime Minister's Office, and his wife Sarah.

Mr Wong will be accompanied in Brunei by his wife Loo Tze Lui, Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment and Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations Grace Fu, National Development Minister Desmond Lee and Minister of State for Communications and Information and for Health Rahayu Mahzam. 

He will proceed to Malaysia on Tuesday evening and meet Malaysian Prime Minister and Finance Minister Anwar and other Malaysian leaders the following day.

Since taking office, Mr Wong has also connected with other fellow Southeast Asian leaders – either over the phone or in person – including Indonesian president-elect Prabowo Subianto, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin.

Brunei and Malaysia were also the first countries that Mr Wong's predecessor Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong visited when he took office in 2004.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong will be Acting Prime Minister in Mr Wong's absence.